by Josh Peter, USA TODAY Sports

by Josh Peter, USA TODAY Sports

LOS ANGELES - When his football team stunned Alabama in the 2009 Sugar Bowl, Utah coach Kyle Whittingham issued a challenge.

"You tell us where to be, when to be there, and we will be there," he said. "We are the only ones standing right now with an unblemished record."

Five years later, Whittingham and Utah's program have lost their some of their swagger - and some of their stature. Whereas Whittingham once was asked to explain how his team beat Nick Saban's Crimson Tide, on Wednesday he found himself talking about what's gone wrong.

Utah has suffered back-to-back losing seasons for the first time since 1990 and has missed out on a bowl games in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1998.

The explanation might be relatively simple: Utah moved from the Mountain West to the Pac-12, where the Utes have compiled a 9-18 conference record and provided ammunition for skeptics. Specifically, the skeptics who questioned whether Utah's program - despite the 12-0 record under Urban Meyer in 2004, despite the 13-0 record under Whittingham in 2008 and despite 15 bowl berths in 20 seasons - had what it took to succeed in a more formidable conference than the Mountain West.

Utah finished 5-7 in each of the last two seasons, and Whittingham said his team's dropoff is "90 percent'' attributable to the change in conferences.

"I don't think there is anything that caught us by surprise,'' he said. "I can tell you the thing that's really been very apparent is the Pac-12 in 2011 when we entered and the Pac-12 now is far superior from top to bottom."

To those who see Utah's struggles as evidence that the team that upset Alabama was overrated, Whittingham points out that at one time 15 players from that team were playing in the NFL. And wide receiver Dres Anderson voiced a sentiment likely shared Utah fans.

"Just because we haven't been as successful in the Pac-12 as we were in the Mountain West doesn't mean we were never a good team, that we were just playing worse competition,'' he said. "We're still a great team. We still can play anybody in the Pac-12.''

Indeed, as if channeling the magic from its Sugar Bowl victory, Utah upset fifth-ranked Stanford last season and ended the Cardinal's 13-game winning streak.

"It shows us we can stand toe to toe with the best in the conference and slug it out,'' Whittingham said. "We had gotten over a hump, so to speak in that game. And we were poised to have a good second half of the season, and we were doing some good things and the wheels came off.''

Utah lost its starting quarterback to injury and then lost its way, finishing 2-7 in conference play.

"We certainly are a better team this year,'' Whittingham said. "The issue is how much better?''

The preseason Pac-12 media poll tabbed the Utes to finish fifth in the six-team South Division.

"We kind of put ourselves in that position,'' Utah defensive end Nate Orchard said. "All we can do now is kind of learn from our mistakes.''

There have been plenty of mistakes, but also misfortune - injuries that cost Utah its starting quarterback each of the past two seasons. A month ago, however, Utah learned quarterback Travis Wilson, who was diagnosed with a career-threatening medical condition last winter, will be available for the 2014 season.

"I see the hunger in him, I see the will to be great,'' said Anderson, Utah's fifth-year senior who might as well have been talking not only about Wilson but Utah's football program when he added, "I'm ready to see him take off.''